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Will a New Job or Employment Gap Hurt Your Mortgage?
Neither one rules you out, but both can add steps. Lenders look for about two years of steady work history. A gap of a month or more usually needs a short written explanation. It's a routine part of underwriting.
47 sec · Captions available on the player · Presented by AI-generated presenters, with every line taken from the FreeRateUpdate page it answers.
Source: FreeRateUpdate answer page, Sept. 29, 2026; FHA
Transcript
This is FreeRateUpdate News. I'm Edmund Ledger. Today's question: will a new job or an employment gap hurt your mortgage?
Neither one rules you out, but both can add steps. Lenders look for about two years of steady work history.
A gap of a month or more usually needs a short written explanation. It's a routine part of underwriting.
After a gap of six months or more, lenders generally count only the income from your current job.
A new job in the same line of work is usually fine, with some extra paperwork.
Lenders look at the overall pattern: steady income, in the same or a related field.
I'm Edmund Ledger, for FreeRateUpdate News.
What the charts show
Table, Work history and gaps: Situation: History, What lenders usually do: Look for about 2 years of steady work; Situation: Gap of a month or more, What lenders usually do: Ask for a short letter of explanation; Situation: Gap of 6 months or more, What lenders usually do: Count only current-job income.